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Guns in Public, and Out of Sight -- and some are in the WRONG hands

Seems the NYT is shocked, SHOCKED that some many who carry should not be, according to the New York Times:

Across the country, it is easier than ever to carry a handgun in public. Prodded by the gun lobby, most states, including North Carolina, now require only a basic background check, and perhaps a safety class, to obtain a permit.

In state after state, guns are being allowed in places once off-limits, like bars, college campuses and houses of worship. And gun rights advocates are seeking to expand the map still further, pushing federal legislation that would require states to honor other states’ concealed weapons permits. The House approved the bill last month; the Senate is expected to take it up next year.

...

Gun laws vary across the country, but in most states, people do not need a license to keep firearms at home. Although some states allow guns to be carried in public in plain sight, gun rights advocates have mostly focused their efforts on expanding the right to carry concealed handguns.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but the people who are most inclined to commit crimes are the ones who are least inclined to worry that carrying a gun without a permit is illegal. But that undeniable reality does not stop the Times from insinuating otherwise with scary anecdotes, some of which are not even relevant. For example, the Times cites a permit holder who "shot his neighbor to death with a rifle in 2008 over a legal dispute." In what sense was that crime facilitated or encouraged by the fact that the attacker was legally allowed to carry a concealed handgun in public?

Not to mention the fact that LEOs are something like 5 times more likely than "average citizens" to be engaged in violent crimes, and something like 10 times more likely to engage in a violent crime than CC permit holders.

Let's talk about people who are "permitted to carry concealed", and the sorts of crimes they commit...

In Maryland, for instance, the ONLY CC permit holders who have committed violent crimes in the last decade have been LEOs. Every one of them. To a man.

And although I haven't closely researched the crime statistics in NY, I imagine that they are similar to MD (and I imagine that IL, NJ and CA are similar as well, considering these states all have similar CC permit issuance policies, and similar LEO-perpetrated violent crime trends) Are we starting to see a pattern here, folks?

Yeah, let's talk about CC permits allowing guns to be carried by "the wrong kinds of people", shall we?...

If the statistics mean anything, it should be that we need a LOT more laws about "cop control" and a lot LESS laws about "gun control" for citizens...

Last edited by Dreamer; 12-27-2011 at 07:53 PM.

It is our cause to dispel the foggy thinking which avoids hard decisions in the delusion that a world of conflict will somehow mysteriously resolve itself into a world of harmony, if we just don't rock the boat or irritate the forces of aggression—and this is hogwash." --Barry Goldwater, 1964